NBA die-hards have another distraction this week with the Las Vegas Summer League in full swing. Rotoworld's Aaron Bruski and Mike Gallagher are both in Vegas taking in the action, so be sure to follow them on Twitter for continual updates about the league's young guns.

Recent Free Agent Signings

Pau Gasoland the Bulls agreed on a three-year deal worth about $22 million. His offensive skills will be eagerly welcomed in Chicago, and even at 34 years old he should hover just below last season's 17.4 points on 48.0 percent shooting, with 9.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.5 blocks per game. It's worth noting that Carlos Boozer, who will be displaced by Gasol, flirted with a career-high usage rate last season -- he finished 26.3 percent of Chicago's offensive possessions while he was on the court, which suggests Gasol will also get plenty of opportunities. He also thrived last year in post-ups and particularly as the roll-man in pick-and-rolls, a play which constituted 28 percent of the Bulls' offense last season.

The bigger concern might be Gasol's health, as he missed 22 games last season and 33 games in 2012-13. Beat writer Nick Friedell has already suggested that Tom Thibodeau "will still likely go with [Joakim] Noah and [Taj] Gibson late in games. They are his defensive closers." It will be interesting to see if that happens, and if so how Gasol handles the decision.

Gasol's arrival also leaves Carlos Boozer's status up in the air. He's been told by the Bulls that he'll likely be waived via the amnesty provision or dealt in a sign-and-trade, but the ship may have sailed for the latter option and Chicago has been very reluctant to amnesty him. From an optimistic point of view, he's currently the fourth-best big man in Chicago's frontcourt.

In other news, LeBron James agreed to sign a two-year deal with the Cavaliers worth approximately $42.1 million, though he has an opt-out clause which he could exercise next season. Mercifully, the belief is that LeBron isn't keeping his options open -- he's simply trying to maximize his lifetime earnings by timing his free agency with the league's next lucrative TV deal, as well as the possibility of a new CBA in 2017.

Rotoworld's Steve Alexander already shared his thoughts on LeBron's return to Cleveland, and I wholeheartedly agree with him. I'm over-saturated with LeBron news and speculation, and won't say much about him, but from a fantasy perspective his value is bullet-proof. Kyrie Irving's ball-dominance isn't likely to be a problem due to LeBron's extraordinary versatility. If he plays off-ball more, he'll likely end up with increased 3-pointers and a higher FG percentage. If he's not exerting himself as often offensively, he'll pick up the slack with increased steals and blocks, etc. Kevin Durant is the clear-cut No. 1 fantasy option and you could argue for Stephen Curry or Anthony Davis at the No. 2 spot, but LeBron is still a safe bet anywhere behind Durant.

Rotoworld's Nick Raducanu asked on Twitter where Kyrie would rank if the Cavaliers do manage to land Kevin Love (far from certain), which got me thinking about how LeBron's arrival will impact Irving. I first dug around in basketball-reference.com to see how point guards have historically fared with LeBron.

I was quickly reminded how awful those mid-2000s teams were, which LeBron carried into the playoffs year after year, and it's impossible to fault him for leaving Cleveland in 2010 (albeit, by his own admission he could have better handled his departure). The Cavs won the Eastern Conference championship in 2006-07 with a supporting cast featuring Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejao, Eric Snow and Sasha Pavlovic. Yikes.

The more interesting takeaway is that since 2007-08 LeBron has always led his team in assists per 36 minutes, and only one of LeBron's teammates ever averaged more than 6.2 assists-per-36 -- that honor belongs to Jeff McInnis, who did it during LeBron's rookie season (but McInnis only appeared in 31 games for Cleveland that year, so the sample size is misleading).

And here are Kyrie Irving's per-36-minute assist totals in his three NBA seasons:

2011-12: 6.4

2012-13: 6.2

2013-14: 6.2

It seems extremely unlikely that Irving's assists will spike with LeBron and Andrew Wiggins alongside him, even though new coach David Blatt is well-regarded for his inventive and effective offensive schemes. In addition to LBJ's need to handle the ball frequently, he doesn't produce a ton of assists for his teammates. Here is a quick breakdown of LeBron's offensive usage last season, by play type:

Isolation: 20.9 percent

Transition: 20.1 percent

Pick-and-roll ball handler: 16.0 percent

Post-up: 14.0 percent

Spot-up: 8.2 percent

The remaining 21 percent of his usage came on a wide variety of plays (cuts, offensive rebounds, etc.), and as you can see the vast majority of his plays weren't likely to lead to assists for teammates, barring a handful of spot-ups and transition opportunities.

Kyrie Irving ranked 16th in the NBA in touches per game last year, per SportsVU data. He tied for 14th in total assists (6.1) but more tellingly he ranked 20th among the league's starting PGs on a per-36-minute basis, where he was 48th overall (6.2). He also ranked 27th in passes per game (56.1), and 26th in assist opportunities per game.

To be sure, part of the problem was the Cavs' middling supporting cast which thrust Kyrie into a do-it-all role in Mike Brown's stagnant offense. Defensive weaknesses notwithstanding, Irving handled an abnormal amount of responsibility with aplomb and Cleveland did well to keep him on a five-year, $90 million extension this summer.

The Cavaliers have reportedly refused to part with Andrew Wiggins in trade talks for Kevin Love, and the Warriors are still a real threat to acquire Love if they agree to part with Klay Thompson. Nevertheless, if Love did land in Cleveland it may create an offensive bottle-neck -- Love ranked 8th in touches per game (86.2), Irving was 16th and LeBron James was 28th (75.6), which means something would have to give. I'll refrain from going deeper into that scenario, given that it's purely speculative.

Carmelo Anthonyreturned to the Knicks on a five-year deal worth roughly $122 million. The deal includes a slight discount in the early years of the contract to give New York some "wiggle room," in Phil Jackson's words. The Knicks are poised to be awful next season, to be blunt, even though the arrival of Jose Calderon (a pass-first PG and deadly outside shooter) should be hugely beneficial for the whole team, Carmelo included.

Melo remains the be-all, end-all of the Knicks' offense, which is where he makes his money (and fantasy value), so he's a safe bet to repeat as a first-round fantasy option. Last year he notched 27.4 points, 2.2 threes, a career-high 8.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.2 steals and a career-high 0.7 blocks. Draft him past the middle of the first round and don't look back.

Luol Deng agreed to a two-year, $20 million deal with the Heat. He's coming off a poor season in which he missed 19 games and bottomed-out at 41.7 percent shooting after getting bogged down in the Cavaliers' offense. The Heat offer a structured offense and a chance for Deng to re-establish himself as a top-tier NBA small forward -- he's only 29 years old, but years of huge minutes in Chicago have taken an obvious toll on his body. Deng typically contributes in every fantasy category except blocks, and he'll have some upside if he falls past the middle rounds in this year's drafts -- after all, somebody has to fill in the scoring void created by LeBron's departure.

Paul Piercesigned with the Wizards for $11 million over two years. He'll give Washington steady production and outside shooting in their hunt for a second straight playoff berth, and he'll be just as important as a leader off the court and in the locker room. On a more nuanced level, Pierce's offensive usage consisted of 36.9 percent spot-up attempts with the Nets last season. He shot 38.8 percent from downtown on those attempts, not quite as good as Ariza's stellar 42.9 percent, but Pierce was slightly better overall on spot-ups (43.6) than Ariza (42.7).

The Wizards' offense led by John Wallrelied on spot-ups for 17.4 percent of their offensive plays last season, more than any other play type, so the takeaway is that Pierce should be a natural fit offensively. His defense is a clear drop-off from Ariza, but even at age 36 he's not glaringly poor enough to make this a bad match. Kudos to Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld for not missing a beat on Saturday -- Ariza agreed to sign with the Rockets, and hours later Pierce was a confirmed Wizard. It'll be weird to see Pierce in a Washington uniform, and I doubt he'll return more than middle-late round value in fantasy leagues, but it makes for a great real-world addition.

NBA die-hards have another distraction this week with the Las Vegas Summer League in full swing. Rotoworld's Aaron Bruski and Mike Gallagher are both in Vegas taking in the action, so be sure to follow them on Twitter for continual updates about the league's young guns.

Recent Free Agent Signings

Pau Gasoland the Bulls agreed on a three-year deal worth about $22 million. His offensive skills will be eagerly welcomed in Chicago, and even at 34 years old he should hover just below last season's 17.4 points on 48.0 percent shooting, with 9.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.5 blocks per game. It's worth noting that Carlos Boozer, who will be displaced by Gasol, flirted with a career-high usage rate last season -- he finished 26.3 percent of Chicago's offensive possessions while he was on the court, which suggests Gasol will also get plenty of opportunities. He also thrived last year in post-ups and particularly as the roll-man in pick-and-rolls, a play which constituted 28 percent of the Bulls' offense last season.

The bigger concern might be Gasol's health, as he missed 22 games last season and 33 games in 2012-13. Beat writer Nick Friedell has already suggested that Tom Thibodeau "will still likely go with [Joakim] Noah and [Taj] Gibson late in games. They are his defensive closers." It will be interesting to see if that happens, and if so how Gasol handles the decision.

Gasol's arrival also leaves Carlos Boozer's status up in the air. He's been told by the Bulls that he'll likely be waived via the amnesty provision or dealt in a sign-and-trade, but the ship may have sailed for the latter option and Chicago has been very reluctant to amnesty him. From an optimistic point of view, he's currently the fourth-best big man in Chicago's frontcourt.

In other news, LeBron James agreed to sign a two-year deal with the Cavaliers worth approximately $42.1 million, though he has an opt-out clause which he could exercise next season. Mercifully, the belief is that LeBron isn't keeping his options open -- he's simply trying to maximize his lifetime earnings by timing his free agency with the league's next lucrative TV deal, as well as the possibility of a new CBA in 2017.

Rotoworld's Steve Alexander already shared his thoughts on LeBron's return to Cleveland, and I wholeheartedly agree with him. I'm over-saturated with LeBron news and speculation, and won't say much about him, but from a fantasy perspective his value is bullet-proof. Kyrie Irving's ball-dominance isn't likely to be a problem due to LeBron's extraordinary versatility. If he plays off-ball more, he'll likely end up with increased 3-pointers and a higher FG percentage. If he's not exerting himself as often offensively, he'll pick up the slack with increased steals and blocks, etc. Kevin Durant is the clear-cut No. 1 fantasy option and you could argue for Stephen Curry or Anthony Davis at the No. 2 spot, but LeBron is still a safe bet anywhere behind Durant.

Rotoworld's Nick Raducanu asked on Twitter where Kyrie would rank if the Cavaliers do manage to land Kevin Love (far from certain), which got me thinking about how LeBron's arrival will impact Irving. I first dug around in basketball-reference.com to see how point guards have historically fared with LeBron.

I was quickly reminded how awful those mid-2000s teams were, which LeBron carried into the playoffs year after year, and it's impossible to fault him for leaving Cleveland in 2010 (albeit, by his own admission he could have better handled his departure). The Cavs won the Eastern Conference championship in 2006-07 with a supporting cast featuring Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejao, Eric Snow and Sasha Pavlovic. Yikes.

The more interesting takeaway is that since 2007-08 LeBron has always led his team in assists per 36 minutes, and only one of LeBron's teammates ever averaged more than 6.2 assists-per-36 -- that honor belongs to Jeff McInnis, who did it during LeBron's rookie season (but McInnis only appeared in 31 games for Cleveland that year, so the sample size is misleading).

And here are Kyrie Irving's per-36-minute assist totals in his three NBA seasons:

2011-12: 6.4

2012-13: 6.2

2013-14: 6.2

It seems extremely unlikely that Irving's assists will spike with LeBron and Andrew Wiggins alongside him, even though new coach David Blatt is well-regarded for his inventive and effective offensive schemes. In addition to LBJ's need to handle the ball frequently, he doesn't produce a ton of assists for his teammates. Here is a quick breakdown of LeBron's offensive usage last season, by play type:

Isolation: 20.9 percent

Transition: 20.1 percent

Pick-and-roll ball handler: 16.0 percent

Post-up: 14.0 percent

Spot-up: 8.2 percent

The remaining 21 percent of his usage came on a wide variety of plays (cuts, offensive rebounds, etc.), and as you can see the vast majority of his plays weren't likely to lead to assists for teammates, barring a handful of spot-ups and transition opportunities.

Kyrie Irving ranked 16th in the NBA in touches per game last year, per SportsVU data. He tied for 14th in total assists (6.1) but more tellingly he ranked 20th among the league's starting PGs on a per-36-minute basis, where he was 48th overall (6.2). He also ranked 27th in passes per game (56.1), and 26th in assist opportunities per game.

To be sure, part of the problem was the Cavs' middling supporting cast which thrust Kyrie into a do-it-all role in Mike Brown's stagnant offense. Defensive weaknesses notwithstanding, Irving handled an abnormal amount of responsibility with aplomb and Cleveland did well to keep him on a five-year, $90 million extension this summer.

The Cavaliers have reportedly refused to part with Andrew Wiggins in trade talks for Kevin Love, and the Warriors are still a real threat to acquire Love if they agree to part with Klay Thompson. Nevertheless, if Love did land in Cleveland it may create an offensive bottle-neck -- Love ranked 8th in touches per game (86.2), Irving was 16th and LeBron James was 28th (75.6), which means something would have to give. I'll refrain from going deeper into that scenario, given that it's purely speculative.

Carmelo Anthonyreturned to the Knicks on a five-year deal worth roughly $122 million. The deal includes a slight discount in the early years of the contract to give New York some "wiggle room," in Phil Jackson's words. The Knicks are poised to be awful next season, to be blunt, even though the arrival of Jose Calderon (a pass-first PG and deadly outside shooter) should be hugely beneficial for the whole team, Carmelo included.

Melo remains the be-all, end-all of the Knicks' offense, which is where he makes his money (and fantasy value), so he's a safe bet to repeat as a first-round fantasy option. Last year he notched 27.4 points, 2.2 threes, a career-high 8.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.2 steals and a career-high 0.7 blocks. Draft him past the middle of the first round and don't look back.

Luol Deng agreed to a two-year, $20 million deal with the Heat. He's coming off a poor season in which he missed 19 games and bottomed-out at 41.7 percent shooting after getting bogged down in the Cavaliers' offense. The Heat offer a structured offense and a chance for Deng to re-establish himself as a top-tier NBA small forward -- he's only 29 years old, but years of huge minutes in Chicago have taken an obvious toll on his body. Deng typically contributes in every fantasy category except blocks, and he'll have some upside if he falls past the middle rounds in this year's drafts -- after all, somebody has to fill in the scoring void created by LeBron's departure.

Paul Piercesigned with the Wizards for $11 million over two years. He'll give Washington steady production and outside shooting in their hunt for a second straight playoff berth, and he'll be just as important as a leader off the court and in the locker room. On a more nuanced level, Pierce's offensive usage consisted of 36.9 percent spot-up attempts with the Nets last season. He shot 38.8 percent from downtown on those attempts, not quite as good as Ariza's stellar 42.9 percent, but Pierce was slightly better overall on spot-ups (43.6) than Ariza (42.7).

The Wizards' offense led by John Wallrelied on spot-ups for 17.4 percent of their offensive plays last season, more than any other play type, so the takeaway is that Pierce should be a natural fit offensively. His defense is a clear drop-off from Ariza, but even at age 36 he's not glaringly poor enough to make this a bad match. Kudos to Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld for not missing a beat on Saturday -- Ariza agreed to sign with the Rockets, and hours later Pierce was a confirmed Wizard. It'll be weird to see Pierce in a Washington uniform, and I doubt he'll return more than middle-late round value in fantasy leagues, but it makes for a great real-world addition.

Isaiah Thomassigned a four-year, $27 million deal with the Suns. His departure from Sacramento was a given once they signed Darren Collison, but the Kings still extracted a valuable $7 million traded-player exception by turning IT2's deal into a sign-and-trade.

Kings GM Pete D'Allesandro cited multiple reasons for why he felt a changing of the guard was necessary, including the need to increase the pace of the Kings’ offense. He also suggested that implications for the team’s long-term salary structure played a part in choosing to pass on matching Thomas’ contract with the Suns. “There aren’t easy decisions when you’re trying to put a roster together,” D’Alessandro said. “When you do the analysis, you have to say, okay, I have to put everything aside, and just look at things from a more objective way."

That's a fascinating quote, because it doesn't take a pair of Google Glasses to see that Thomas has been objectively a more effective player than Collison since entering the league in 2011. Here are some stats from each player during the 2013-14 season (per-36-minute to account for IT2's starting role vs. Collison's backup job):

Thomas himself gave a compelling argument for his value in a candid interview with SLAM magazine shortly before signing with the Suns. It's good enough that I'll quote it at length. "It hurt [when the Kings signed Darren Collison], but at the same time that’s been my story my whole life," he said. "People have doubted me, people always bring guys in who they think are going to outplay me or outwork me and that’s just not the case ... A lot of guys in this league can’t average 20 points and six assists like I did [in 2013-14] ... I know that being 5'9" scares a lot of people, because that’s not the prototypical starting point guard in the NBA. I’m going to keep fighting, keep working and I’m going to show teams and show people that I am a legitimate starting point guard ... If I was 6-foot [tall] I would be signing for $90 million contract just like [Kyrie Irving] ... I know the politics of the game and I know what I’ve been through to this point. I'm 5'9" and that’s why I was the 60th pick. That’s why the Kings keep bringing new guys in. That’s the reason why."

Thomas now finds himself with the Suns, who (in stark contrast to the Kings) made it crystal clear how much they appreciate his value to the club and the community. He should find himself playing a solid 30+ minutes as Phoenix's sixth-man, but may struggle to recapture last year's 2nd-round fantasy value as long as Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe are both healthy. Keep in mind that Bledsoe is a restricted FA who could be playing elsewhere next season, but the Suns have already begun contract talks with him and they seem committed to matching any offer sheet (the Bucks are interested).

Thomas was tremendously efficient while running pick-and-rolls last season (41.7 percent of his plays) and he was even better in isolation (12.6 percent of his plays). According to Synergy Sports, his points-per-possession ranked in the top-30 in both play types. The Suns' offense actually used slightly fewer pick-and-rolls and iso plays last year, but Thomas should still be a solid fantasy option in the third round, and a value pick in the fourth. Note: IT2's value would surge if Bledsoe does end up somewhere else.

Chris Andersenagreed to a multi-year deal with the Heat despite also being pursued by the Knicks and Cavaliers. It's encouraging to see the Birdman settle into such a productive role toward the end of his career, and Miami has done well to keep the core of their team intact, but fantasy owners can't expect more than the borderline value he offered in 14-team leagues last season.

Caron Butleragreed to a two-year, $9 million deal with the Pistons. As I've written in multiple blurbs over the past few weeks, Stan Van Gundy seems to have a single-minded focus on improving his team's perimeter shooting. It's a reasonable stance for a team that ranked 29th in the NBA in 3-point percentage last season (32.1 percent, only better than Philly), especially since they're already stacked in the frontcourt. Butler is a solid veteran who can fill a productive bench role, as he proved with OKC last year, but his days of fantasy glory are far gone.

Marvin Williamsagreed to a two-year, $14 million deal with the Hornets. Williams missed 16 games last season and had a below-average Player Efficiency Rating of 14.0 (the league average is 15.0), and it's hard to justify such a big deal for a veteran who has been wildly inconsistent throughout his career. He'll give the Hornets some length at the SF position and to his credit he did make 35.9 percent of his 3-pointers last season, resulting in a career-high effective FG percentage of 51.9 percent. Even if Williams earns more than the 25 minutes he averaged last season, which isn't certain, fantasy owners should view him as a late-round flier at best.

Bulls rookie Nikola Mirotic will sign a three-year, $17 million contract which is a very substantial sum for a first-year player. Chicago clearly has high hopes for their highly-skilled 6'10" power forward, who averaged 12.4 points, 1.3 triples, 4.6 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.8 blocks in a mere 24 minutes per game with Real Madrid last season. He'll need to add some muscle to his frame, and unfortunately for fantasy owners he's unlikely to have a big role as the Bulls seek to re-establish themselves with a healthy Derrick Rose and a frontcourt of Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and Pau Gasol (with Carlos Boozer still an outside possibility).

Greg Smithwas traded from the Bulls to the Mavericks, where he's equally unlikely to have any fantasy relevance. The Mavs have Tyson Chandler as their starting center with Brandan Wright backing him up, leaving minimal opportunities for Smith and Bernard James (especially if DeJuan Blair stays, but he may soon be sign-and-traded to the Wizards).

Kirk Hinrichagreed to a two-year, $5.6 million deal with the Bulls. The second year is a player option and it's a very reasonable deal for the veteran guard, who should see his minutes reduced with Derrick Rose ready to start at PG on opening night.

Nick Young signed a four-year, $21.5 million contract with the Lakers.

P.J. Tucker agreed to a three-year, $16.5 million contract with the Suns.

Anthony Morrow signed a three-year, $10 million contract with the Thunder.

Brian Roberts signed a two-year, $5.5 million deal as a backup PG with the Hornets.

The Mavericks acquired Chandler Parsonsafter the Rockets declined to match his hefty three-year, $46 million offer sheet, which was constructed in such a way that Houston GM Daryl Morey felt it would be too constricting in future seasons. I've run out of space to discuss this in depth, and there are even more deals I've not even mentioned, but they'll all have to wait until a future column.

Before I end, it's worth mentioning that the Wizards, Rockets and Pelicans completed a quirky three-team trade on Sunday. Here's the breakdown of what each team received:

Wizards get an $8.5 million traded-player exception for dealing Ariza, as well the non-guaranteed contract of Melvin Ely from the Pelicans.

Despite residing in Portland, Maine, Ryan Knaus remains a heartbroken Sonics fan who longs for the days of Shawn Kemp and Xavier McDaniel. He has written for Rotoworld.com since 2007. You can follow him on Twitter.Email :Ryan Knaus